


Because There's Still So Much More To See

by ShipItLikeGayFedX



Series: The Beginning to The End [2]
Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter/Funhaus RPF
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, F/M, Fake AH Crew, He gets nightmares and he worries waaaaay too much about what's real and not, I'll update the tags as I go, M/M, Sci fi shizzle, Some Fluff, There is major character death and a lot of it but I think you won't hate it too much, This is a genuine continuation, a lot of swearing, also some maybe minor PTSD?, bisexual main characters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-04-04
Updated: 2016-07-12
Packaged: 2018-05-27 13:05:06
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,559
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6285865
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShipItLikeGayFedX/pseuds/ShipItLikeGayFedX
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Fake AH crew definitely went through a lot of stress and hurt, and they lost a man because of it. They get him back, but things are much different and a new revelation causes them all to band together, and not for a heist. They want revenge. But before they get it, they need to make sure who is really on their side...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Mad King

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There will be some branching out and some sad bits in this fic, as well as some more twists and relationships. You'll also see some new characters! Thank you for reading! 
> 
> (Recommended reading the first part of this series first, Never Meant To End This Way, or else you will be severely confused)

"Ryan?"

Gavin couldn't believe what he was seeing. He knew it was there and that it was real, but he still couldn't  _believe_  it.

Ryan smiled at him. "In the flesh, the original, the best, Mad King. And other cliché phrases that all say the same thing." 

Gavin scoffed, and shook his head. He took a deep breath and sighed, wincing only slightly, before adding to his list. "The one and only?"

Ryan hummed. "Not quite." He brushed his kilt and suit jacket before placing his hands on his hips. 

Gavin furrowed his brow. It was a habit to show real emotion with the man he was currently with, and he decided it didn't hurt to show some confusion after realising he was doing it. "What?" Ryan had a habit of saying weird things like that, but  _what_?

Ryan ignored it, brushing it off with a turn of his body and a slight pace before placing his feet firmly down further from the door and closer to Gavin. He assumed the stance he has seen many times before, but he had the extra poker face that he used when Ryan would take on a torture mission. His stance was wide, his legs spread while firmly planted on the ground to show the confidence that body language typically gives you an idea about. His arms were crossed, but in a more violent, "I know something you don't and I'm going to know more in a second by beating it out of you" kind of way. Gavin had taught the man the wonders of body language, but he was never as good as Gavin was with it.

It was honestly a funny sight to see, now, however. He looked like a thug wearing a skirt. Okay, a  _kilt_.

But...  _Ryan_?

"Joshua, close the door." _Joshua_. Basement Boy did as he was told. "There was a project." Gavin was caught off guard. 

"What?" He had no choice but to repeat that word, but at least the tone changed. 

"I was working on a project. Top secret, government involvement and all." He rubbed his face and resumed his crossed arms, continuing on with his explanation. "The people on that list," he clicked his teeth. "They were all involved with shutting it down. They knew about it and they knew about me and they knew about how it can be destroyed. So  _they_  had to be destroyed." He straightened his stance. "There, you happy?" 

Gavin was. In fact, he was happier than he should have been from hearing that news. 

Because he knew something Ryan didn't.

And a few moments later, that proved to be true. Sadly, Gavin didn't actually get to witness it. Ryan had knocked him out, and Basement Boy was the only one left with him. Poor guy. 

Gavin's luck pulled through, however. A clever plan sparked in his head days before, and he had a back up. And here they were now.

Mister James Willems jumped in through the window. Broken glass didn't seem to phase him, but it looked like an idiot falling off the bed. Adam Kovic, a kind of attractive man with a beard, was the one who got Gavin out of the chair, while Bruce Greene, second in command, put a bullet right between Basement Boy-no,  _Joshua's_  eyes. It was probably quite the sight, Gavin thought later.

 

* * *

 

 

Two days ago

 

 "Hello, Mr. Kovic." He stopped his whistling instantaneously. He stared at the shorter and thinner man holding a gun at him. He spoke with a british accent. He had to think what he was related to. Why was a British man after him?

"Uh. Hey... That's a gun."  

Adam looked him up and down, and Gavin nodded. "Well, yeah. And I've been given thorough instructions to use it on you."

Adam took a moment to think. "Then... Why haven't you used it yet?"

He didn't lower his gun yet. Precaution and all that. "Because the man who gave me those instructions is a mingey bastard and I want nothing more than to ruin his day."

 

* * *

 

Present time

 

Lawrence Sonntag wasn't there, but he was nearby with some tech of his own. He was feeding them the best routes to get out of there while carrying a man on their back. 

Joel Rubin, about as equally leader-esque as Adam, was the one to pick them all up. 

Gavin wished he could have seen the small team work their way through this, but he was proud of his idea once he woke up not tied to a chair. 

 

* * *

 

Two days ago

 

"I don't want to kill you," he spoke with honest words. "I didn't want to kill anyone on that list."

They sat at a rounded table. "But you want us to give up our warehouse?" Bruce seemed a bit too serious.

"Think about it. IG is falling apart. Why not leave while you're ahead?" Gavin tried to persuade them. "You can get some of the gubbs we take and pull out all your best men and let _us_ take care of wiping out as many people as possible so that you can get a fresh start."

That seemed to be a clever thought, because the two men paused, captured by thought.

"And what about our crews?" Adam seemed the man to take charge. Gavin made this mental note.

"Whatever crew you get, I'm sure we can try and strike up a partnership, or, if you prefer, pretend this never happened." Gavin didn't get this opportunity much anymore to just flat out persuade someone, and he loved getting a new chance at some sense of near normalcy.

The two men looked at each other and nodded. "Alright, then."

Gavin smirked. "I have one more request."

"What's that?" The men were about to shake on it, but now their hands had to awkwardly reel back while they wait.

"In our heist, I need a back up plan." He had an ambitious look upon his face and the other two men couldn't help but get caught up in it.

"Okay?"

"Stay nearby. Follow me if things go south." They once again nodded and finally sealed the deal.

 

* * *

 

Present time

 

They hated to do this, but what with the current events, they couldn't really just take him back home as a group of strangers. It was a delicate situation, but they still wanted some sort of compromise. They didn't want a man walking that far with his amount of injuries, but he insisted he could do it.

They gave him the toughest pain meds they had and reluctantly sent him on his way.

He walked in the dark with a mind half clouded with pain and half clouded with a medicated haze. The more he walked, the more he kept seeing Ryan in the corner of his eye. He tried to ignore it, but alas, he couldn't.

After shouting at the fake apparition of Ryan, he couldn't keep going on. Crashing to his knees, he had only time to hope his boi found him before someone else did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Previously uploaded a preview on March 21st] I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! I'm so sorry to keep you waiting! 
> 
> Also, like I have said (somewhat), I have a few fics in works right now and I don't know which you'd prefer to see. I can't make any promises because I'm not that talented, but I'd love to try out some requests! If you have any you want me to, just tell me in the comments for now! 
> 
> Please let me know what you think, especially about the personalities on the Funhaus members currently. I'm still trying to get into them so I've not got their personalities down like I do the AH crew.


	2. Find The Kid

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They don't know how to react, and it might take a long time for things to get back to normal- especially if they have to become five instead of six.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if this sucks! I'm not sure how bad this is and I'm sorry if it is bad. If not, happy reading!

"Michael."

He jumped. He turned to face the bearded man. He glanced over at Ray hard at work, fretting silently about how much he needs to find him. "What's up, Jack?"

He set a glass of water down on the desk Michael sat at. "You are."

He felt a catch in his breath at the fear of Jack telling him to stop. He could feel anger coming on already. "What's that supposed-"

"It's been _hours_ , Michael. I don't think you've even _blinked_ , yet alone closed your eyes for more than a second."

He had half a mind to stand and fight him right there, but he needed to keep looking through the street cams for any clue. With his eyes fixed on the screen, he continued on with his increasingly rage-filled tone. "And?"

"Hours. Since you've eaten, since you've slept," He pulled a swivel chair up next to Michael. _That's Gavin's spot,_ he couldn't help but feel a sense of disdain. "I'm not telling you to stop."

Then what _are_ you telling me?" He shouted, but he didn't know how loud. He saw Ray glance over in the corner of his eye, but no one really seemed to care about the emotions he felt.

"You need a break. Close your eyes, get something in your system. Then..." He didn't know if he should continue.

"Then what?" Michael snapped. He wasn't going to let Jack not tell him.

He heard the man sigh. "Maybe you can think. Get your head a bit more screwed on right. Think about every possibility instead of-"

Michael slammed his fists on the desk as he stood. "I _have_ thought about all of this, Jack! That's why I'm so _keen_ on trying to find him!"

"And what will you do if you _do_ find him?" He kept his calm. They rarely gave him credit, but his ability to keep a cool head really helped everyone else do the same.

"I'm going to punch him," he said with a lighter punch to the desk. "And then I'm going to kiss the shit out of him," he said as he lowered himself back into his chair.

"That doesn't exactly sound like a healthy relationship, Michael." _Offering **all** kinds of wisdom today, are we, Jack?_

He sighed, and rather out of character, he spoke quietly. "Yeah, well a healthy relationship typically isn't had between criminals, especially when one was hiding being a possible mole from the man he loves, either..."

He sighed. "Fair enough."

Michael rubbed his face and glanced over at his screen again while mumbling a 'yeah'.

Jack had empathetic eyes. "I can tell this hurts you."

"Of course this hurts, man, it hurts like hell," he sat up from his slouch, "but I'm going to give him a chance, just like you would in a 'healthy relationship'," he sighed. "We're not completely dysfunctional," he got a hint of a smile on his face. "I still love him, don't I?"

Jack knew his words were sincere. He really thought they would end up happy together- if they could figure out what was happening.

He nodded. "You're going to do better looking with a clear head, you know."

Michael glanced back at his computer, and then over at the other man in the room, quietly typing and clicking away. "Ray?"

He looked over. Michael gave him a look and he knew what it meant. "Yeah man, take a break. You need it."

"So do you," he watched as the childish man was resuming his serious stare at the screen. "But thanks." He gathered his stuff and walked towards the older man who was now standing by the door.

"I'll get him something to eat."

 

* * *

 

He grumbled, angered at the turn of events. He just wanted to find Gavin and get this all cleared up. Kicking pebbles and shuffling his feet, he wondered if this was what it was like for Gavin when he almost certainly snuck out at night.

 _What a dick_ , he thought.

It had been a few minutes, and he noticed a bit of blood in the middle of the street and on the sidewalk. _Why did he go so far away from other people?_

He followed the trail. It _must_ be Gavin's. Following further down the path, the stranger and more unnerving it got. It looked as if someone kept attacking nothing and it got all thrown about. Some fence posts were bent. _What happened here?_

He figured it out. Turning around, he noticed a familiar body. It reminded him far too much of what happened earlier, but he was in an even worse state than before.

 

* * *

 

There was an almost full sandwhich in front of him. He took two or three bites, but his focus on finding him was more important than food.

He lucked out. Not in the way he wanted to, but he found someone. Ryan.

He was carrying a body on his shoulder in one of the cameras he hacked. He wasn't being very inconspicuous, but Ray was clever enough to remove some of the footage from the police's hands before and this was no different.

He picked up his phone to call the currently patrolling Geoff.

"Did you find him?" His voice was a mixed drink of worry and caution with one part sober.

Ray sighed. "No, but I found Ryan. He's carrying a body." It was Geoff's turn to sigh. "You might want to go get him. If anyone sees, I can't easily erase that, you know. I'm sending you the location to your GPS."

Geoff couldn't help but pause at the strange seriousness of Ray. "Alright then. On my way."

He sat the phone back down.

"What'd you find?" Jack and Michael were back.

"Ryan," he answered without breaking his intense stare on the screen.

Michael sat back down. "That's good."

He just nodded.

He heard the silence in the room get interrupted by a silent "Michael?' from Jack.

"Ray, you just working on the cameras now?" Michael's chair slid closer to him.

"Yeah. Not much to do with the hacking bit anymore." He focused on the small screen in the top left corner.

"Let me take over." His drooping eyes widened.

"No, Michael. I can-"

"I sure you _can_ , but it's not what you _need_." Michael was ready to switch immediately.

He sighed. "Fine." Jack gave him a pat on the back as he stood up. "Ryan was right."

"What?" Michael didn't know what he meant, but his tone was painful.

"Maybe 'golden' boy wasn't so ' _golden_ ' after all." He was too tired to feel too guilty for saying that.

"Ray..." Michael didn't know what else to say.

He took a deep breath. "I just... Maybe he was right."

Michael didn't want to hear this. "You don't mean that."

He turned to look at his friend. "I think I do, Michael! I don't want to, but I think I do."

"Ray." Jack joined in.

He turned to face both men this time. "It was Gavin who got us in this mess! And for whatever reason, here we are, still trying to save him!"

"Ray!" Michael pleaded.

"I'm not going to stop looking for him, but we need to stop relying so much on useless optimism, Michael. The universe is _rarely_ that fair." Ray hadn't had this rage in a while. He decided to walk towards the door after that.

Michael stopped him. He grabbed his arm. He didn't want to use violence on his friend, didn't want to use force, but he didn't know what's going on. "Ray-"

"You only want to save him because he's your _lover-boy_." Ray didn't even know what he was saying at this point.

"Ray, stop it-" Jack stood awkwardly in the back.

"No, Jack. It's only been a _day and a half_ , Michael."

"I've loved him for longer!" Michael wasn't going to stand for this.

"And how do you know that he wasn't lying the entire time you did?" Ray didn't know if he truly meant these words or if they were just his paranoia and trust issues taking over.

"I..." Michael knew why he was saying all this, but he didn't know why he'd actually say them. He had trust issues, they all did. But sometimes, optimism is a good thing.

Ray walked out the door mumbling a 'sorry'.

"You okay?" Jack finally was able to speak up.

Michael took a while before replying, focusing more on his need to sit and watch all the tapes. He didn't want to be, but he was certainly affected and he couldn't help but have some doubts. _I'm not okay_. "Yeah." _I'm pissed and confused_. "I just need to do this."

"I'm sorry." Jack sat in Michael's chair as he sat in Ray's.

"Why," he asked, his eyes not leaving the screen.

"Because that was a stupid question. Of course you're not."

"Yeah, well, you try-" he got interrupted by Ray's phone ringing. He furrowed his brow but picked it up anyways. It was Geoff calling so it must be important.

"We found him." Geoff's voice came through the line slightly distorted from the shitty service he must have. Michael's heart jumped for a moment before remembering what Ray had said. He found Ryan.

"Ryan, you mean?"

"Oh, hey Michael. What are you- never mind. Yeah. Ryan." His voice was filled with surprise upon hearing Michael's voice.

"Bring him back." Michael was serious and commanding.

"We have to get him, first." He heard Geoff take a deep breath.

"What do you mean?" Michael's shaking from the Ray situation calmed and he felt a lacking in the emotional area.

"Well, he's carrying a body and he must not be stable. He might put up a fight." Geoff seemed like he was looking away, sounded strained as if he was focusing on what must be Ryan.

"Do you know who the body is?" Jack's head perked up. _What body?_

"Not yet. Call you back."

"Alright."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry again if this is bad, and extra sorry for the feels!


	3. What Are You Getting At, Here?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tensions arise as some rather unfortunate events ensue.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry in advanced! I rather hate this chapter and I've rewritten it maybe twenty times now and I can't come up with anything better. I hope you guys don't hate it as much as I do! I'm going to post the next one either later today or tomorrow. Sorry for the long break!

"Ryan." Geoff's voice startled him, but not enough to make him jolt. He turned around, and another surprise radiated from Geoff's direction. His own boss, pointing a gun at him. "Put the body down, Ryan..."

His face twisted in disdain. "Don't call him that." A calm anger soon to be broken encompassed his tone.

Geoff had his calming voice; the one he uses when he's trying to get someone to put a gun down or release a hostage. "I'm sorry, Ryan. Just-"

"He's not a _body_ , Geoff." His voice was a growl.

"I didn't-"

"Stop it!" He took a deep breath. "Stop trying to manipulate me like I'm some bad guy holding a gun to someone's head. I'm not going to fight back or whatever the hell you think I'm going to do." He noticed Geoff glancing over at the man flung over his shoulder.

"I'm sorry, Ry-"

"I said _stop_." He sighed. "He's not a body. I don't _want_ him to be one." Geoff cocked his head slightly, almost unnoticeable in the dark sky around them. "It's _Gavin_ , Geoff."

 

* * *

 

Gavin laid on the bed that Caleb operates on. They all wondered exactly what happened and they were all on edge. They had so many paranoid thoughts. _What if it's true? What if he was forced to do this? What if he wakes up and kills someone?_ They decided to keep a man watching him at all times.

It had been three days. Some of them pretended nothing had happened and that he just was in a bad way. They'd worry about all of the other stuff later. Just focus on waking him up, first.

They did more to him than just a stab wound. Caleb found many different injuries on his body and poisons in his system, but he couldn't determine what type of poison it was. None of them could figure out why they'd basically torture him if he was working for them.

They could only hope.

It wasn't three _continuous_ days he was unconscious, however. He woke up while Caleb was out of the room and Michael was on watch. He obviously wasn't aware, but he had opened his eyes and before even noticing who was with him, he called out a name. "Michael," was from a broken record with two loops before actually shattering. Michael ran in, and as if on cue, Gavin started shaking uncontrollably. He hadn't had the most medical knowledge, not by a long shot, but he knew what this was. A seizure. Caleb must have some sort of alert, or maybe just a correct fear, because he ran in and did whatever he could.

He didn't wake up for another two days.

And Michael didn't sleep for just as long.

~~~

He sat next to Gavin. He seemed to have the most faith of everyone in the team. The others thought Gavin just fucked up his deal or finished what they needed him for and decided to off him. Another idea was that it was just some really clever means of persuasion.

Another lie. Gavin was good at lying.

But Michael refused to not have hope.

Michael was on edge. On top of the lack of sleep and the fear of Gavin maybe turning on them, he was afraid of Gavin being hurt, especially more than temporarily. He couldn't handle any of this for much longer.

He paced in the room, mumbling soundless breaths that were screams in his mind alone. His own voice, dancing about in his brain, throwing out every thought possible. It all calmed in a fraction of a second with one little quiet word, and every thought became one. _Gavin_.

"Michael..." A quiet voice coming from the bed behind him made him snap 180 degrees around to lay his eyes on the bruised and gaunt man lying on it. He feared another seizure, but he didn't seize up. He was weak and thinner than he ever thought possible, and he didn't give a shit about everything that happened up to this moment.

"Gavin. Gavin, you okay?" He kneeled next to him and reached for his hand. "You okay, boi?"

Gavin grabbed his hand, with a surprising grip. He used it as leverage to sit up. "Hey, Micoo." He was smiling. Such a wonderful sight to see.

"Don't try to move around, Gav. You'll hurt yourself." He tried to gently push him down, but Gavin refused. He never saw a man as stubborn as him.

"I just want to sit up," he spoke with a worried tone. _Why is **Gavin** worried?_

"Alright, man. Just-" Geoff walked in, looking down at a tablet.

"Hey, Michael-" he glanced up at the man, only to find sleeping beauty had awoken. "Gavin."

Near instantaneously, Gavin dropped Michael's hand. "Geoff." He gave him a nod.

Michael immediately missed the feeling of Gavin's fingers gripped around his. "What did you want, Geoff?"

He sat his tablet on the table next to the scalpels and medical scissors. "I was going to switch out shifts, but..."

He wasn't going to continue, but he definitely decided against that when the man in the bed suddenly collapsed onto his own hand. It wasn't a forward fall, but more as if the internal supports of a building collapsed and had to rely on a pillar.

"Gavin!" Michael was ready to respond to whatever necessary, but Gavin just took a deep breath and pushed himself back up.

"I'm..." He took another breath. "I'm alright, Micoo. Just got a bit tired is all."

"You sure?" Michael didn't believe him for a second. There's no way in Hell a man who's been tortured and put into a state of unconsciousness for three days could be doing as well as he was, and he'd obviously be tired. _How the fuck are you so okay, Gavin?_

Geoff dismissed himself. "I'm going to go let the others know."

He got nothing more than a nod in reply.

"I'm _alright_ , Micoo." He gave him a smile and it looked so real, he couldn't determine if it was a lie or not, god dammit. Gavin was just that good.

"Gav..." He concluded what it was subconsciously, apparently, and his mouth decided to test his theory. "You sure as hell aren't 'just tired'. You should be getting some rest right now."

"I'm just... I guess I'm still on guard, I s'pose." He watched as Gavin's eyes focused on his pointy knees under his blanket.

Michael noticed Gavin had begun to shake. Not at the intensity of earlier, but as if he was shivering. "Gavin?" He didn't even seem to notice him, yet alone respond. Gavin twitched and Michael gave up on his extremely calm tone. "Gavin!" It was still a question, but a worried one.

He watched him literally shake his head back to reality. "What- sorry. Sorry, I..." He sighed and looked up as his shaking hand was gripped into a ball. "Sorry. Just zoned a bit."

Michael's lips parted with worry and sorrow. His poor boi. "Gavin. Gav..." His eyebrows raised as a means to tell him to continue his thought. "What... what did they do to you?"

His eyes closed and his head turned to face nose pointed towards his knees again. He drew a shaky breath. "N-nothing I've never been through before." While experiencing it in the first place, he didn't consciously live through it, and he still was hyped up on whatever the hell he was hyped up on and was able to make it on foot for so long. At first he thought adrenaline, but he must still have some in his system if he's already moving this much. Unfortunately for him, his subconscious was what went through the torture, and his subconscious was his only company for the past few days. So he had to live through it all over and over again.

And he was reliving it yet again.

"-worrying me! What's wrong?" Michael's interrupted his memories.

He shook his head again and looked up at Michael. "S-sorry..."

He shook his own head, but to deny Gavin. "Don't apologise. It's-"

"Oh, thank God!" A new voice filled the room. A deeper voice than the two previously in the room. _Ryan_.

Michael was glad to hear another one of his friends speak. He turned to see everyone coming in, with Ryan in the lead. Gavin had a different reaction.

He probably ripped a few stitches moving so fast, but he bolted himself up as fast as was physically possible for him. He grabbed a scalpel from the tray near him and lunged towards Ryan on his his bed with intent to injure. He was going to get him too, if it weren't for the fact that Michael was quick with acting and held him back.

"Gavin, what the fuck?" He heard Geoff shout from behind Ryan, who was raising his hands.

"Gavin..." Ryan just said his name calmly. _This definitely does **wonders** for his case,_ Michael thought.

"Gavin, put it down, please," Michael restrained the weakly squirming man.

"No! It's his fault!" Everybody was immensely confused at his remark.

"Ryan?" He heard a quiet voice come from the back. Ray.

Ryan shook his head in a confused gesture. "What are you talking about?"

Gavin jabbed at the air towards Ryan. "You know bloody well what I fucking mean!"

Michael knew better than to grab the blade from him, but he also knew it would be a bad thing if either of the men got harmed. Frankly, Michael would prefer himself hurt than anyone else on the crew. So he carefully wrestled the scalpel from Gavin's hand. It was successful, with less than a weak resistance and a whimper of defeat in his opposition, but he still panted in what Michael believed to be huffs of anger. It proved to be a good thing he took it, too.

"Gavin, what do you mean?" He continued to be Gavin's constraints. Ryan lowered his hands.

"It was... It was _him_!" He actually growled into Ryan's direction. "Keep him... keep him away from... away from me! It was all him!"

Geoff walked forward to intervene, but a glare from Michael told him not to.

"Gav-"

"No! No, you don't..." he huffed harder than the big bad wolf on the brick house. "You don't understand! It was... it was _Ryan_!" His eyes blinked rapidly and his words got more unintelligible and fast. "It was... him... all him. How could you? It was... it was..." He began to slouch. "He did it... it... it..." His eyes rolled back into his head. _Unconscious. **Again**._

"Gavin?" He lightly shook the man. "Gav?"

Ryan stepped forward. "Is he-"

Michael jumped to his feet. "What did he mean, Ryan?"

He shook his head. "I don't know-"

" _What did he mean_ ," He screamed at the man.

" _I don't know_ ," He shouted back.

"I think you would if you were the centre of that big an accusation, _Ryan_." He got into his personal space, only to be pulled apart by an interposing Geoff.

"Stop it!" Geoff screamed at the two as Michael snarled at the older two men. "Michael, you're relying too heavily on Gavin's word. He _could_ still be lying." Ryan adopted a face of subtle pretension, only to be wiped off by a verbal slap by Geoff. "You're not off the hook, Ryan. We don't know what's happening and you're the closest thing we've got to a clue." He gave him a look that told him he didn't _want_ to do what was about to come. "We need to keep you and Gav both under strict supervision."

He diffindently agreed. "Fine," he said following a sigh.

~~~

Michael couldn't bring himself to leave as soon as the others did. He was worried about Gavin, especially since he didn't notice any way he truly betrayed the team, and he knew him. He'd not keep something this big from him, would he?

Eventually he did leave, however. He finally got some rest, and Caleb volunteered for watching him while he watched the back of his eyelids.

The poor Gavin was out for another two whole days, and Caleb told him that there was an "anomaly" with Gavin. Something about how he was healing far too quickly for someone with his conditions. He definitely was going to look into it.

 

* * *

 

  
2 days later

The guys (minus Ryan and Gavin) were all in the living room playing video games when a crash sounded as if something clambered over something unstable. Their undoubted lamentation that they already clouded with alcohol and virtual murder vanished as they all stood up, half expecting a demented Ryan to come out of the room under watch by Jeremy or Kerry at the time. But the figure they laid eyes on was something surprising; a Gavin, walking around as if his only injury was inflicted by a minor car crash. He still had wounds, but what would usually take months to heal from had only taken five days.

Michael ran up to catch him. He knew he'd still be weak; he wasn't the fucking _hulk_. He had no idea how anything related to Gavin was possible right now, but it was all just being dropped on him after just barely being told to hold out his arms. It's almost too much.

"Gavin, how are you up right now?" He carried the man to the sofa.

"I don't know." Caleb came running in.

"Are you in pain?" Caleb asked him, panting a bit.

"It burns," he answered as he tried to stand up again, only to be pushed back down.

Michael bit his lip. "What does," the medic asked for him as Geoff and Jack came quietly and calmly towards him.

"Everything. My... my skin, my blood. All of it. Why does it burn?" He was erratic.

Caleb sighed as he produced a needle and syringe from his kit. He looked at Michael. "Hold him," he mouthed. He obliged, and held down the squirming man as he freaked out about the needle. "I'm sorry, Gavin."

Gavin stopped struggling in a few seconds. "What was that?"

"A sedative and an antidote of sorts," he said as he packed up.

"For what?" Geoff interposed.

Caleb turned to face all four men in the room. "Ray," he gestured to the man, " _might_ have helped me hack into some hospital databases, and, well, I _might_ have noticed that this wasn't a normal poison, so I _might_ have looked up similar cases in the databases, and I _might_ have found something."

"And you ' _might_ ' have found out hoe to fix it, am I right?" Geoff was getting impatient.

"They never saw anything like it, and they were lucky finding how to fix it. The people in hospital must have been a trial run," he explained. "It, uh, heals you? Like, it puts you into a prolonged state of unconsciousness and produces endorphins that increases the speed of cellular regeneration while most of your other system are in a minimal amount of usage. It's actually highly advanced; I think-" He looked around the room at a group of confused faces.

"Can you use normal people words, please?" Geoff was short fused, and quite justifiably so.

"Right, sorry. It, uh," he took a second to think of the right words to 'dumb it down'. "It puts you into a coma and bonds with bits of your body that produces little... healy thingies... that heals you when your body is using the minimum it can in it's body systems, hence the coma. It diverts power to rebuilding, like a computer with a virus. Except... bigger." He only hoped that made sense, because it made less sense than his first one to him. When the room was filled with nodding heads and 'oh', he concluded they understood it.

But of course there'd be more questions. "How long will he be out this time?" Ray spoke a second before Michael could ask the same question. He sounded... worried? As if he was going with his 'useless optimism', after all.

"Only for about an hour," he answered. With a slight bit of unease and quiet words, he added, "hopefully."

They put him in his own bed this time. Maybe a bit of trust would be a good thing? They'd make sure he couldn't leave through the windows or any of the doors, and by all means no access to the armoury, intelligence, or the heist room. But he could walk around.

A normal Gavin would be the easiest for everyone to grasp the situation.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry again for the break and the shitty chapter. Let me know what you think! Thank you so much for reading :)


	4. Welcome Back

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm much more proud of this chapter than the last. I hope you guys enjoy it, too!

They all wanted that 'normal' Gavin.

Gavin was good at keeping secrets. He had an invisible mask no one could tell was there. No one could know it was a fake, a mask. He took it off for his team years ago, but when he came back from that place, when he woke up, the mask was back. He wasn't childish, wasn't goofy, he didn't say fake works; he wasn't Gavin. Gavin was never so serious.

They wanted _Gavin_. They didn't get him.

Caleb told them it'd be about an hour, but he was out for three. Being weak and eradicating a toxin might have prolonged it, and so he woke up while everyone else was asleep. Following his unfortunate learnt routine, he immediately checked his body. He counted some large bruises and a few nearly healed cuts, and a nasty scabbed-over and purple mark from where he was stabbed. He could tell it'd heal nicely, but it'd scar for a few months regardless. His mind grasped the logic of what he was given rather well, even with the minimal amount of consciousness he's had. He knew it'd heal him faster and better, and what would've been terrible scars, and quite frankly a career-ender, was just a small break from most seduction missions in the future- if they let him still go on missions.

His brain went straight to a dutiful mindset. He quietly and efficiently prepared for the day. He had only been up a few hours before the others started waking up. He waited calmly by Geoff's door for one of those hours, and only stopped waiting once Geoff came out.

Geoff jumped, surprised to see Gavin standing outside his door. "Gavin, what are you doing here?" He had just woken up, and he looked it, too. By the mangled way his hair looked, he must have had a rough night.

Gavin looked down for a moment and took a step back, only to look back up with a straight face. "I didn't know what you all wanted for me to do. Sorry."

"I'm going to get the others, okay?" Gavin nodded. "Are you well enough to tell us what happened?"

"Yes." Gavin hardly shifted.

"Okay. We'll all go through this together." He hated to end the conversation so short, but he didn't know how to react to being in a scenario he's been in countless times before with only one new variable: the doubt on Gavin's trust. With guilt, he began to walk away. Gavin stopped him.

"Everyone?" His face didn't show any difference in it's appearance. It showed no worry, no guilt, no negative emotion in the slightest. He didn't even have a positive one, either. He just looked like a machine; an emotionless creature with no sense of feeling at home.

"Well, yeah. We're all involved," Geoff answered the out-of-place man.

"Ryan, as well?"

He remembered the scene that played out before him a few days ago. "' _Everyone_ '," he reiterated.

 

* * *

 

Gavin had a glimpse of fear in his expression for less than a second as Ryan walked in. He ignored his memories of what Ryan did to him, and looked over to Geoff as he spoke.

"I'm sorry for what I've caused," he spoke with a sense close to shame, but it was nearly unnoticeable.

He could feel Michael's worried eyes peer at him with a frozen pain engulfing him.

He ignored it.

Ryan had a complete different stare set on him; his eyes were perched like birds watching their prey. One wrong step, one incorrect action and he's gone. He knew Gavin could snap at any moment, or he could say something incriminating. He didn't want that.

Gavin ignored his stare, as well.

They sat in silence for a short amount of time before Geoff got them moving again. There was a frown under his moustache, and a wariness in his voice.

"Gavin," he began. "When did all of this begin?" First thing's first: find out how long he's been betraying them.

He barely looked phased about anything in the room. "About four months now."

Michael and Ryan knew exactly what he was talking about. Going by the others' faces, they slowly realised as well. But Geoff was all for making sure right now.

"And what happened four months ago?" Gavin's face twitched at the thought, but he kept every inch of his face in check otherwise.

Michael hated it. Gavin was treating this like another job. He wasn't being himself. He wasn't Gavin right now; he had his face, his nose, his eyes, his hair, but they weren't the same. His nose seemed straighter, smaller. His face was too serious. His eyes lacked the light they've possessed for the past few years they've known him. His hair wasn't as stylishly unkempt. He was like a kid putting a lot of effort to look like something but still not exact; like a cosplayer dressing up and being so close but not quite there. He _hated_ it.

He didn't realise Gavin seemed to pause for his thoughts. Gavin wasn't a mind reader, but he was quiet until Michael had aware eyes on him again. With a sigh, Gavin explained. "I was kidnapped."

Michael hated it when Gavin said those words. They were heard far too often.

"And what caused you to betray us?" Geoff was blunt, and he didn't care.

Gavin looked down. "I didn't-," he stopped himself and sighed, looking back up. "The man there, _Joshua_ ," he recalled the name. "He made a deal I couldn't turn down."

Geoff felt sick. He betrayed them, and for what? Money? Fame? A personal favour, maybe? He trusted him to be more loyal than this.

"And what sort of _deal_ was this?" Geoff wanted to hiss, to scream at him, but he saw his reaction to Ryan. He attacked him, and he didn't want a scalpel or a pen or any other sort of object being lodged in his throat.

What he told them was the truth, but none of them expected it. Most of them didn't even believe it at first. "Your safety for my service." Geoff didn't understand. _Why betray us if you wanted us safe?_ Gavin continued. "There were cameras. He knew where you all were. Michael and Jack were drinking. Jack was passed out on a table at a booth," he glanced towards the two men he mentioned as they recalled what they did that night. "Geoff and Ray. You were in different flats. I have an idea of what you were doing, Geoff. I don't blame you for needing a distraction," he didn't know why he said he didn't blame him. He didn't, but it's not like any of them care what he thinks. "And... Ryan," he took a pained breath, realising now how Ryan seemingly betrayed him, as well. He looked directly at the man. "You were at the gym. You must have taken down at least ten punching bags at that point. You kept texting me, trying to get me to explain why I wasn't there, but I couldn't get to my phone. You thought I was ignoring you. You threw your phone and broke down, and I was given a _deal_ ," he put emphasis on the word. "I either help Joshua take out a list of names, or I watch you all die. I refused to have you all hurt," he explained. "You put on a good show, Ryan. I'm impressed."

Ryan frowned at his accusation. "I never 'put on a show', Gavin! That was _you_!"

Gavin raised his voice a miniscule amount. "And I never betrayed you!" They all didn't understand how he could say something so obviously a lie with such an honest face. "I didn't," he said, calmer. "But you betrayed me, Ryan. I trusted you. That's proving to be a mistake now."

Ray interrupted. "Gavin, you piece of-" he exhaled and angry breath. "Don't _lie_. We _know_ you betrayed us. We _overheard_ you." Ray spat out words, each with such an impact that Gavin felt like he was being stabbed again.

"Ray-" Ray cut him off, but he ignored it and started again. " _Ray_ , I _never_ betrayed you guys. I did it all to _protect_ you. I had something to lose, I had you all, and I couldn't have you hurt!" He finally had some emotion in his words. "I killed people, I admit." His voice cracked and he spoke with an incredible amount of sorrow, but it was so real. "I... I killed innocent, nice people. I framed another criminal so that I could keep going. But I did it because if I _didn't_ , they'd have killed you." He looked at every person, tears in his eyes. He even glanced at Ryan.

Ray sat down. It made sense. But Ryan wasn't having it. "Bullshit!" Gavin drew a pained breath. He didn't want to keep going at this point. "You didn't give a _shit_ about us. You _never_ did. You went so far as to implicate me as the bad guy!"

Gavin stood up. " _You_ went so far as to have me _kidnapped_ , _tortured_ , and forced to _kill_ for you and your selfish need to protect some top secret government project!" Gavin was seething with and anger and pain.

Ryan was actually confused. Gavin looked so sure, and maybe it was just his skill at pretending to be something he's not, but it would have convinced Ryan if it weren't for the fact it was addressed for him.

"What?"

Everyone else was thinking the same, peering at Ryan now.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about, Ryan. I'm sorry you had to find out I didn't kill the last two by getting your plan foiled by them." Gavin was calmer now.

He still had no idea what he was talking about. "Gavin, what are you-? I don't know what you're talking about. What plan? What project?"

Gavin opened his mouth, unsure of what to say.

"We're all wondering the same thing, Gavin. Do tell." Geoff would be easier to explain this to.

Gavin took a deep breath. "It was always you or I. In Ryan's eyes, anyways. This crew would never have everyone survive. It was either you guys, or me. I would have chosen myself in a heartbeat, but I wanted some answers and to stall, first." As if he read their minds, he explained why he wanted to stall. "The last two people on that list, they owned that warehouse we hit. _Joshua_ was sent to find me when I was looking for them in the warehouse. We made a deal later to give them some of the loot in exchange for protecting me after _Ryan_ inevitably kidnapped me." His words were packed full of information. It all made sense. "As for the project, I don't know much about it. Just that it was top secret and the people on that list I had to kill turned out to know about it." Ryan would be worried if this were true.

Jack finally spoke up. "How does Ryan come into this, Gavin?" Michael was going to ask the same thing. He didn't want to doubt Gavin, but he needed to know.

"He was _there_. He called himself the Mad King, and he was wearing a kilt and a golden crown. He confused me a little when I first found out it was him, but seeing as I was filled with adrenaline and _stabbed_ ," he subconsciously felt around for the scabbed-over wound he acquired from the knife. "I didn't really ask too many questions about what he was wearing."

None of them knew what to say after that. They all didn't know who to trust. They all believed Gavin, at least a little, but they couldn't believe _Ryan_ was the bad guy in the end. Maybe it was because they couldn't bring themselves to think they'd ever lose a team member, or maybe they just made a good case, but it was still how they all felt.

After a few minutes of silence, and Gavin and Ryan both about to say something, Geoff got a call on the phone. It was Jeremy.

"I thought you were having a group meeting," Jeremy asked.

"We are," Geoff replied, confused.

"Then," he heard Jeremy fumble with something. "Why isn't Ryan there?"

Geoff furrowed his brow. "What do you mean?"

"I'm around where Ryan was when he found Gavin the other night. He's just over here, walking around and looking incredibly weird." Jeremy was ordered to clean up the mess and to keep an eye around the area since he didn't have to guard Ryan anymore.

"What?" Geoff contemplating putting him on speaker.

"Yeah, he's walking around in a kilt and a crown. It looks really weird. What's he doing here instead of at that meeting?"

Geoff put his phone down and set it on speaker phone. "Say that again, Jeremy."

"Uh... "What's he doing-'" Geoff cut him off.

"No, the other thing."

"Oh, right. That probably makes more sense," he chuckled and repeated. "'He's walking around in a kilt and a crown'. That's right, right? I don't-"

Everyone was left agape, including Gavin. He was so certain the man right across from him was the man who did all that.

"Are you sure it's Ryan?" Michael raised his voice to ask the man. Gavin's head immediately snapped towards Michael.

"Yeah, unless he's got a long lost twin brother no one knows about."

"How the _Hell_ were you telling the truth, Gavin?" Ryan couldn't help but ask. If there was another Ryan, everything he said could make sense. However, there's still the matter of _how the hell is there a second Ryan_?

"Was that Ryan? Or is that Jack?"

Jack answered. "We're both here."

"How the-" Michael cut him off.

"That's exactly what we're trying to figure out." They all looked at each other in disbelief.

"Well, what do you want me to do? Should I shoot him?..."

Gavin looked at Geoff, waiting for confirmation or denial. He _really_ wanted confirmation.

Geoff nodded.

"Shoot the bastard," Gavin ordered. It felt good to be the one to say it.

"Alright." The phone wasn't hung up, but he muted his phone and took the shot. Jeremy took a silenced weapon with him luckily, and they waited for his word on if he made the shot. He unmuted his phone. "Goddammit!"

"What happened, Lil J?" Michael was concerned.

"It's like he knew! He got in a car and drove off when I was about to take the shot. He had a weird vial, though." They all exchanged more glances. "I'm sorry, guys."

"It's alright, Jeremy." Geoff hung up the phone, and noticed Jeremy semt a picture of the man wandering about. It looked _exactly_ like Ryan.

They all looked at the picture, then at Ryan and Gavin.

"So..." Ray began. "You were telling the truth, Gav?" He nodded, prompting Ray to sigh. "Oh. I'm so sorry, Gavin."

"Why?" He didn't understand why any of them would apologise. He should be the one doing so.

"For what you were put through. For assuming..."

Gavin realised what he meant by 'we overhead you' earlier. "It wasn't your fault. I'm sure whatever was said was very incriminating."

Ray only sighed.

"Listen, Gav-" Ryan started to speak, only for Gavin to interrupt with something equally as important.

"No, Ryan. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have attacked you before knowing the full story." Gavin looked ashamed. Everyone was believing everyone else, but it was still so difficult.

"I'm sorry, too." Ryan was as upset at himself as he was previously at Gavin. He hurt the kid. He couldn't believe himself. _Way to go._

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Any feedback is appreciated! Sorry again for the long break I had. I was sick and swamped with work and I had awful writer's block. I hope this chapter makes up for it all! Think you for reading :)


	5. Figring It All Out

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took so long to update! I had terrible writer's block and no time to write, and when i did I could only write in my notebook meaning I had to transcribe and edit and then handle the difficulty of putting it onto ao3 xD I hope this chapter was long enough to make it up to you, and if it wasn't, I'll also upload the first chapter to something else I've been working on very soon.

The guys had a difficulty going back to normal, especially when Gavin was _far_ from normal. They had very little of an idea of what happened to him; he wouldn't tell them anything more than the essentials. He told them he was tortured, he explained to them later he was kidnapped more than he had previously told them, and he told them about why he looked so tired. He told them the truth, and they believed him, for which he was grateful for. He just wished it didn't take a call from Jeremy and a spotting of Ryan's bloody double before they did.

They all concluded that Gavin went through some incredibly odd stuff. Caleb brought to their attention that even his coma was abnormal, saying "I've never seen, read or heard of anything like it". He didn't need to be hooked up to any machinery, save something to measure his pulse and to be sure he was still alive. His systems were working just enough to keep him among the living (vital signs wise) and he didn't starve to death immediately. Thank god, too, because Caleb didn't have the equipment he needed to hook him up to a feeding tube. He woke up incredibly deprived of food and water, and they fixed that soon enough, but he was really rather healthy for a man in a coma.

They all had some trust issues after the fact, but they knew that'd go away sooner or later. Ray remembered the conversation Gavin and he had before the last heist. He realised that the 'Night Prowler' was actually _Gavin_ and he smiled now about how Gavin tried to tell him, at least a little, right there. _'I know we're criminals, but I'd hope we wouldn't kill anyone innocent without a **damn** good reason'_. He tried to tell him, didn't he? He couldn't help but try and think of all the times he said something, anything, to let them know he was doing something he regretted without flat out saying it.

He got a little bit of trust in Gavin back after he realised it. He knew Gavin wouldn't keep him completely in the dark with something like this; he cared far too much. It really _did_ help to know Gavin wasn't being incredibly heartless doing it.

Geoff forgave him almost immediately after realising he was telling the truth. He went through some of this before with another group of people, and all he wanted was to be forgiven. He wanted the chance to make that happen to his friend now. He would keep Gavin closer than he usually would for a few weeks, but he knew Gavin enough to know he'd only do this sort of shit if he _had_ to, and he would sometimes find himself getting angry for ever doubting the man.

Jack was cautious, but he wasn't ever truly convinced Gavin was a traitor. He would probably have had a heart to heart conversation with the man like he always did when someone was having a problem in the group. He had it on the to do list, however. Unlike Geoff, he decided to give the man some space before springing everything on him.

The second Ryan found out that, in a way, Gavin was reasonably angry at Ryan, he forgave him. Looking like him and hurting him must have been bad enough, and if he was anything like him in terms of skill - which was terribly likely going by the coma he was put in- it must've been absolutely dreadful. He found himself thankful Gavin didn't have enough strength to kill him when he had the chance. He knew he would've done it if he were in his position.

Michael had the most hope and the most pain of the five. He knew he loved Gavin, and it hurt to know that he hid something so big from him. He didn't know what he would've done if he _was_ a traitor. All he knew, and all the other guys, was that it wouldn't be the same to lose someone like that. They'd lose so much trust for each other, and they'd end up falling apart. They'd try for a few months, but ultimately, they'd find themselves with so much distrust they wouldn't even stay in the same apartment anymore.

They were glad they were all wrong about what was going on. They still had a lack of trust, but it could be earned back. They had a meeting the next day to talk about the trust issue and the 'Mad King' issue. No yelling, no tensions, just good old fashioned crew meetings. They all decided the best way to get back to normal was to do the normal things again.

Before that meeting, however, they had Jeremy do his best to follow the double and they had Gavin get some rest in his room. As for the others, they'd do whatever they wanted. They were trying for _normal_ , after all.

Ray went to his room, and he regretfully barricaded his door a little bit too much for a man who was supposed to be trusting. But no one tried to bother him, and he slept easier.

Ryan, Jack, and Geoff all decided to go out to a bar and apologise to Ryan for their doubts and to celebrate the best possible outcome.

Michael had already apologised to the man for doubting him at least a little, and he decided to stay behind and keep an eye on Gavin.

Honestly, everyone was a little bit brash that night. They did some things that weren't normal, some things they didn't really need to do, but it all happened. No one blamed them, but they needed something to do to make themselves feel better.

~~~

Ryan, unlike how he usually was, decided to get a little bit drunk. He hated the flavour of beer, but the dreadful aftertaste in his mouth left over from this whole ordeal needed something strong to wash it out.

Geoff had no problem with drinking alcohol, however. Jack didn't really, either. They all had an unspoken rule currently that they'd do whatever it took to get back to normal, even if the first few days needed everyone not actually thinking about it and being drunk off their rockers.

After a good 'ol apology, they had a fun little night involving 'Team same Voice' making small bets on if they can tell who was saying what with random people at the bar.

Meanwhile, Geoff decided to call Griffon.

Ringing, he held the phone up to his ear and stepped outside. The phone rung one too many times and a pre-recorded message of "Hi, you reached Griffon. Leave a message after the beep. Except for you, Randy. Fuck you."

He found himself laughing at her message and left a message like she said to do. "Hey Griffon, it's Geoff from the bar. Sorry for never calling. I wanted to, but I sort of got caught up in some drama and, yeah. Long story short, my best friend was put into a coma and another one of my friends was suspected to be the reason of it," his words were interrupted by his own laughter. After the fact, it sounded like a dumb excuse you'd tell your teacher in high school because you didn't do your homework. "And yes, saying that out loud, it sounds really fucking dumb. But, yeah. Believe what you will, I guess." He laughed a bit and continued, a chuckle tied with his words. "In all honesty, I could definitely use some outside relationships instead of these five guys, if you'd like to call back. By five guys I mean... uh. Yeah, I apparently can't say something right for the life of me. Anyways, if I'm not too dumb for you or whatever, I'd love it if you'd call me back. Talk to you if you do!"

The second he removed the phone from his ear was the second he felt the embarrassment hit him like a truck. _There's no way she'd call back after that_ , he thought. But he could only hope.

He couldn't help but laugh as he witnessed Ryan and Jack hiding under a table with people guessing who was talking. He shook his head and watched from the bar as they did so. He believed for once they'd actually get back to normal in no time.

~~~

Gavin was too quiet to bear for any longer. Michael was annoyed. However, Gavin was annoyed by his incessant pacing and muttering of unintelligible words.

Gavin couldn't make them out, but Michael knew what he was saying. Well, he knew what he was _thinking_. He didn't know he was saying it aloud. "We just need to fix it, yeah? None of this should have happened, no one did anything wrong. You love Gavin, Michael. You love your team. Just fix it all and it'll fine, right? It'll all go back to normal. The Gents should be doing fine right now. Geoff will be drinking as usual and Jack will be eating as usual and Ryan will be, what, stabbing as usual?" He continued to mutter and pace, and he glanced at Gavin. He was far too still, far too quiet. "Christ Gavin, stop worrying me, you little bitch. What _happened_ , what's-"

But Gavin asked what he was about to before he could finish. "What's wrong, Michael?"

He cringed at his effort to say his name correctly. It sounded far too foreign. He looked up at Gavin to watch him quietly type on his laptop, stopping as he felt Michael's eyes on him.

"Nothing, Gav. Why?"

Gavin gave him a look. "Pacing, mumbling. You're talking to yourself. Not a good sign. Nervous? Upset?"

He sighed. "Don't analyse me."

He looked back at his screen as a little notification sounded. "Sorry. Couldn't really help it."

Michael sighed again, letting out pent up stress. "No, it's alright. At least you're talking now." He didn't reply. He couldn't help but give him a slight look for calling his bluff, but Gavin wasn't looking. "Besides... I guess I kind of like being analysed by you. But _only_ you."

That made him look up. He observed the man standing in front of him. He seemed less stressed now; his shoulders weren't as high and his brow wasn't furrowed. "Oh?" He decided not to speak his observations yet, electing to wait for the opportune time and to acquire even more information. "And why is that?"

Michael's mouth twitched into a smile that lasted only half a second. He consciously forced himself to have a straight face as he realised Gavin was analysing again. "Because I like you, for one. I don't really like anyone else." _What is Gavin playing at?_

Gavin sat the laptop down and stood up. He walked behind Michael and grasped his shoulders and gave them small squeezes in the form of a massage and began to relieve his stress.

"Are you sure that's the only reason?" Gavin said this quieter, but steadily. Something about what he was saying, what he was doing, and the how of both made him feel a different emotion. He told himself it wasn't the time for this form of excitement, but he couldn't tell himself off. _Maybe **this** will make things feel more normal?_

He couldn't say much more than, "uh."

Gavin was an expert at reading people; he _must_ have noticed. He had no idea if this was his intent, but if it was, it was definitely working. Maybe part of the reason either of them were okay with this was because of the events that occurred, and they just really needed some relief.

Gavin needed a change in his emotion. He needed to feel _something_ around _someone_ , and Michael was always supposed to be the man to fix everything. Any form of trust with anyone in the team would be a great start, and Michael was always the most perfect thing to him. So, instead of moping around, he decided to make Michael feel pretty good and hope it made him feel the same.

He kissed the back of Michael's neck. "So there is another reason, then."

Michael hummed in response, enjoying himself far too greatly. "I don't know. Why don't you analyse it?" He teased.

Gavin felt himself smile, glad of Michael not turning him away and glad of the change in mood. Depression was far too, well, depressing. Arousal was far much more arousing.

"I'd say you enjoy it when people don't need to ask questions to get the answer," he began. "You enjoy it when I can take one look at you and know exactly how to make you beg for mercy."

Michael felt a burst of bubbly warmth fill up inside him like a shiver for something other than a chill. He didn't know he'd like it so much when Gavin talked dirty.

Michael couldn't help but get red in the face, blushing at the thought of what was about to happen. He was about to say something dumb that he thought at the time would be arousing to the other man, but he didn't get the embarrassing chance to do so. Instead, he was interrupted by a firm grasp on his arms and a little turn of their bodies that resulted in them facing each other. A kiss interrupted any words, and Michael couldn't help but imagine the feeling and how it resembled those movies with 'true love's kiss' fixing everything. It seemed this kiss would indeed fix something, even if it's as little as resolving the awkward unknowing feeling of if they were actually allowed to get close to the other.

For a long while, they were only kissing with Michael's inexperience resulting in funny little chuckles and noises from miscalculated pressings of their lips. Gavin, once again, took control of the situation. Removing his shirt, he gave Michael a confirmation of where the night was going to go.

Needless to say, they didn't have a problem with being by each other's side after tonight, and it was back to the usual 'Gavin and Michael always go to the other for everything' that they used to have, and it was definitely a start to fixing it all.

All they needed was to eliminate the threat of the Mad King, and then the whole trust issue should be fixed rather quickly. Gavin was ready, so long as he had his Michael by his side.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry again for taking so long to update! Also, I'm sorry if there are any mistakes or awkward scenes that don't seem to fit. It will probably take pretty long for me to finish this part, but hopefully my other story will update pretty quickly. I have fresh ideas for the new one, but this one is hard to write in the little rut I'm in right now. But don't wory, because I'm NOT abandoning this. I promise!


	6. Come Out

Two months later

A lot happened the last two months. It wasn't much in terms of importance, but they certainly weren't sitting around all day. Gavin and Michael went back to trusting each other implicitly, and Gavin had too many nightmares to sleep alone. They changed their sleeping arrangements, now accommodating for both Michael and Gavin in _one_ room. Michael would still claim his room as his own, but he slept with Gavin now on a bed with black sheets and two custom pillows: a Union Jack for Gavin and an American flag for Michael.

Ray and Ryan were closer now, too. They were still wary, mostly on Ray's side, but they trusted much more. Every once in a while, he would get the sudden fright of a thought "is this actually Ryan?", but he was ultimately comfortable with the man again. It felt almost back to normal sometimes with the two; little glances were more frequent, more nights were spent together, and they seemed to be able to laugh again when they were together. They never put a title to what they were, but they weren't just friends. They were something... different. More. Maybe when this was all over, they'd be able to call themselves something more official. Maybe they'd be able to hold hands more, say more, _be_ more. But they couldn't do it just yet.

Jack and Geoff seemed more like they used to when it was just the two of them in the group - more so than ever before. It was back to their childish banter mixed with the responsibility of two men fit for real lives and fit for families. It was back to their simplistic lives mixed with ambition and crazy ideas. They would constantly play little pranks on each other and the rest of their group and banter like an old married couple, and they felt good that they were the only group that _didn't_ have someone to worry about. Much. They hated that they all ended up in little groups, but it was easier to get the trust back in small amounts instead of the chaos they began with. They didn't all start this group with six and they knew it would be fixed like that, as well.

Ryan and Gavin were friends again. They shared this depressing sort of experience that they trusted, and they believed that they'd be able to tell who the other was. In public, it'd be harder, but they'd know when they're alone or at home. When they were all together, they knew.

That was the last two months, however. June was full of sex and dates and parties and the less exciting nightmares and mental episodes that inevitably needed the first three things to get their minds off of again. Today was important. Today was July 7th, and today was a day they all dreaded while simultaneously waited anxiously for. They just wanted it to happen already, but they absolutely _dreaded_ it happening. They hated it.

They finally found him. The Mad King was there, and all they had to do was reach him and kill him, and maybe get some information while doing so. They discovered a bit of a hideaway for the man. It was a place they actually heard about, but not for some years. It was a place meant for protection that was for sale by one of their suppliers at the time. They almost took it. _Almost_.

The Mad King apparently had the same supplier. Maybe the supplier thought it was just Ryan, or maybe he knew. It didn't matter now, though. He was found dead a few days after they figured out where the Mad King was. The Mad King probably killed him, or had him killed by some twisted torture that forced someone to kill without wanting to, like what he did to Gavin.

First, they needed codenames. One of Ray's heists had them all called by their middle names. They decided to have a callback, except only the middle initial. So, Geoff was 'L', Jack was 'S', Ryan was 'J', Gavin was 'D', Michael was 'V', Jeremy was 'N', and Ray was 'X'. Ray had to come up with something more practical, seeing as 'TAFKAR' was dated and, frankly, too long. 'N' and 'J' were both used, and so what else to use? 'X', signifying the lack of a name. Gavin found it hilarious.

Their plan was to have Michael and Gavin team up together and go on the inside. Gavin had the most knowledge of what was going on still, and he was great at infiltration. Michael was great at fighting, meaning he'd be able to hold his own and then some if he had to. Michael also had the skill of keeping Gavin calm, which was necessary to have in this scenario. Meanwhile, Ray and Ryan would be together with Ray keeping watch from afar and Ryan doing the same from up close. They didn't want Ryan inside for a number of reasons, and they wanted to keep him level headed if anything went wrong. Ray was the best at that, next to maybe only Jack. _Maybe_. Jack was always good at calming people, but Ray was _Ray_. As for his job in this scenario, Jack had the same role he always had: the getaway. He was already in position, ready to get them all out. Geoff, meanwhile, was standing back and giving the directions that they might need, and he, along with Jeremy, stood back ready to fight as back-up. They came prepared, and hoped it was unnecessarily so.

Things went to plan. At first.

Gavin was walking around with his little gadgets, surveying the rooms and trying to simultaneously teach Michael how to _finally_ be stealthy. He was better than he expected, but he didn't possess any more skill than the average person who had to sneak around, say, a sleeping dog or their mother at one in the morning.

Michael took it seriously, but _Gavin_ couldn't know that. He took pride in being able to cheer his boi up, and he loved it when Gavin played along to his little games. He was aware that Gav knew, but he just couldn't stop doing it. It would take away all the fun.

He had on a false pout and took an accidental step too far to the right and made some noise much louder than either expected. He froze and waited for Gavin to stop looking at his small device and let him know if he ruined everything. With a relieved and quiet sigh, he confirmed he didn't. "No one in the near vicinity," he whispered.

Michael felt his own sigh of relief bellow out, and he was surprised it was so quiet for how strong it felt.

"Thank _God_ ," he whispered back. He froze when he heard a hushed chuckle, and spun around as silently as he could, just to find Gavin caught up to him stifling anything louder.

"Hey V," he began. "Is sneaking still for nerds?" He smiled a shit-eating grin, and Michael gave him a look.

"Shut up," he looked away with exaggerated embarrassment, partially to humour Gav, and partially to cover up the small amounts he actually felt.

They pushed on, getting more and more nervous with every step they took. The lack of anything worried them, and they kept getting little false alarms. It worried them excessively. Michael felt an itching thought at the back of his mind, and he couldn't help asking after a few minutes.

"Hey D," he whispered. His voice was cloaked in silence and fear, and he didn't even care to hide it anymore.

"Yeah?"

He stopped against the wall behind the taller man. "Why do you think he's not here? Don't you think we'd have found-"

Gavin stopped him mid-sentence. Holding up his hand, he gestured for Michael to stay behind in the hall as he followed what the little screen was telling him.

He was around that corner for too long. Michael was getting worried. _Too **long**._ He didn't know if he should turn the corner or if he should just stay there for a few more minutes. Finally with a good idea in his mind, he realised that he was there to protect Gav. He can't do that just standing there, so he decided that the only good idea would be to look for him.

He didn't know what he expected. Maybe he expected the Mad King, or maybe he expected Gavin silently holding off a horde of men, but he didn't get that. All he knew was he didn't expect what _was_ there. Gavin was lying on the floor with a bloody face with a little bit of that same blood going a bit further and staining his light blue button down. With a quick glance around, he crouched down, a little less-than-gently shaking Gavin. When there was no response, he reached for a pulse instead. His lungs let go of his breath and his head hung with relief. "Thank God," he whispered.

It was loud enough for Geoff to hear. "Everything alright, V?" It took him a second to recognise the codename.

"No. Ga-, I mean, D is down. What do I do, L?" He frantically looked around, certain he heard something out of place. A sort of click? _Something's wrong..._

"Down? Explain," Ryan jumped in. He was already on edge, what with being kept out and being forced to watch what might just be the death or capture of two of his friends just after everything started working out again. In his mind, that was exactly what was happening.

Michael reached for his gun as he replied. "He's knocked out. I can't wake him up. What do I _do_ , L?" His whispering grew louder, and he caught himself too late to stop making noise.

Geoff stayed quiet. He didn't know what to tell him to do. He had no idea what the right answer was.

"V, get him out of there. Forget about the Mad-" Ryan answered for him, but Michael couldn't hear it. It surprised them all that the man whose own identity was stolen was telling them to forget about the man who took it, but it definitely came from him.

"No. We have to kill this son of a bitch. For you, for... for D. For all of us. Now's our only chance!" He couldn't tell whether his paranoia or his annoyance was the most overlying emotion in his mind.

"V. If we're doing this for all of us, then we need all of us _alive_." Jack joined in with his own wisdom. He was always good at having people see what's really happening.

"Do you really think you could get to the Mad King alone? Do you think you could just leave D behind, while you're at it? And don't say you'd just carry him because that's bullshit. You need both arms to strangle the life out of the fuck," Jeremy's words spoke truth so sharp it'd cut bone.

Michael sighed. Jack was right. Ryan was right. Jeremy was right. He had to go back regardless of if he wanted to.

"Fine." He placed his pistol back in its place and looked at Gavin once again. He looked too peaceful for what was happening. It was a direct conflict with the blood on his face. With a sigh, he reached out to grab Gavin, to pick him up and carry him down each floor and back to their team.

He never did make contact with the man.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've had nasty writer's block and so haven't updated in a while, so apologies. If you have any suggestions, feel free to give them to me either in the comments or ShipItLikeGayFedX on tumblr (I'll take requests, too.) I hope you liked this new chapter!


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